Last updated: March 1, 2023 at 16:15 pm
When staying at a hotel, the least you expect is a nice, quiet room to get a good night’s sleep. That, however, isn’t always to case. Soundproofing a hotel room whether as a guest or hotel owner can prove beneficial in more ways that one.
This article has two main sections:
- For hotel owners – this focuses more on what can be done structurally and as part of construction
- For hotel customers – this section focuses on what you can do as a guest to block more noise
IN THIS ARTICLE
For Hotel Owners
A happy customer results in a successful business. This is why ensuring that your hotel rooms are soundproof can allow customers to experience complete privacy and helps avoid any noise disturbances during their stay. Many customers complain about noise levels after staying in hotels and will often leave reviews discussing this topic, warding off future customers.
Because of this, it usually benefits the hotel to install soundproof barriers to some, if not all, of the rooms. If you’d like to save on costs, you could implement these options in a number of the rooms and advertise them as “soundproof rooms” while making it clear that this is not the case for every room in the hotel.
This way, any customers who are looking for a soundproof room can avail of one. But we would recommend implementing these soundproofing methods into every room to ensure complete customer satisfaction.
Extra Insulation
If you’re looking to soundproof your hotel but you are operating on a tight budget, we would recommend installing insulation or an extra layer of drywall to the walls of the hotel room.
This will ensure soundproof rooms without spending too much.
Doors
Ensuring the doors to your hotel rooms are as soundproof as possible is another important task as a lot of noise can occur in the hallway. But before we tackle this problem, it’s important to consider installing self-closing hinges that allow the door to slowly close as opposed to the door loudly slamming.
The noise of doors slamming can travel further than you might think so this is a vital step. In terms of soundproofing the door itself, look for any gaps in the door in which sound can travel through. If you fill these gaps, you can ensure that sound from the hallway won’t filter into the hotel room.
Weatherstripping is a useful method in this scenario as it will fill any gaps in the door and ensure no noise will seep through. Weatherstripping can also help keep heat in the room, which is an added benefit if your hotel rooms are particular cold.
Windows
Ensuring your hotel rooms have double-glazed windows is a great start in successfully soundproofing a room. Double-glazed windows have an extra layer of glass which ensures little sound will be able to enter or leave the room. If you don’t have (or want to install) double-glazed windows, you can insert sealed panes on the windows which will block out sound.
An extra measure you can take is to install soundproof curtains to fully ensure you have a soundproof room. Soundproof curtains don’t block sound out fully as much as they reduce sound levels. But they work wonderfully when combined with double-glazed windows and strong doors.
Another method would be to install acoustical panels into the hotel rooms as these operate as great sound blockers while also remaining aesthetically pleasing for your hotel. Combining all of these options means you will succeed in soundproofing your hotel rooms to the best of your ability!
For Hotel Customers
You may book a hotel room for a myriad of reasons. If you’re staying in a hotel after a party or event, you may not care about the level of noise occurring around the hotel you’re staying in.
But for those who stay in hotels the night before a meeting, work event, or occasion in which sleep is vital, there are ways to ensure that your room is as quiet as possible.
Also read: Are Hilton Hotel Rooms Soundproof?
Request When Booking
A simple action you can take when making a booking, (or even once you arrive, if you’re lucky), is to request a room that is further away from noisy areas. If you’re not sure of the layout of the hotel, you should enquire with the staff regarding the quieter rooms to book.
If you’re making the decision by yourself, it’s important to think of the areas of the hotel that tend to attract people and thus, are noisy.
Areas with vending machines, elevators or stairs, and common areas tend to attract people and noise. Along with this, consider the noise levels of the actual vending machines (or perhaps, ice machines) and avoid, avoid, avoid!
By taking the location of your room into your own hands, you can ensure less noise even if the room you’re staying in doesn’t have any further soundproofing measures.
Ensure No Events Are On
It’s a good idea to enquire with your hotel before your stay to see if there are any events occurring during the duration of your stay.
If noise reduction is massively important to you, it might be a good idea to ensure that there aren’t any weddings or large events that would result in a loud hotel environment. Or, again, you could ask for a room away from all of the hustle and bustle.
Avoid Connecting Rooms
Another tip we would recommend is to avoid connecting rooms (where possible) if you’re looking for a soundproof environment.
While some doors can be classed as “soundproof”, you will be able to hear noise coming from the connected room more than you would if your rooms were separated by a soundproof wall. While a connecting room may work out cheaper, you could be paying in lack of sleep!
Airport Hotels
Along with this, we recommend booking an airport hotel. For starters, airport hotels generally implement soundproof measures so that their customers can’t hear planes taking off and landing throughout the day and into the night.
While blocking out plane sounds, the room will be able to block out any noise occurring around your room. Airport hotels tend to be quieter in general as people who are travelling tend to utilise these types of hotels and are therefore staying in them simply to sleep for a night or two.
Door Sweep
If the hotel room you’re staying in does not take the measures to ensure your room is soundproof, there are some adjustments you can make to create a quiet night of peace while you travel. A door sweep is a useful tool to take with you to hotels to be prepared for any situation.
A door sweep can be used to bridge the gap between your door and the ground, if such a gap exists. They’re cheap to buy and you can bring them with you for your stay in any hotel.
Worst case scenario, if you’ve arrived at your hotel and you don’t have a door sweep, a blanket or piece of clothing blocking the gap in the door can help keep the noise of the hallway at bay. Just be sure that this doesn’t create an obstacle in the event of a fire.
Ear Plugs
While it’s difficult to make any real adjustments to the hotel room you’re staying in, you can bring some objects of your own to ensure your room is quiet, especially while you sleep.
We would recommend bringing earplugs or noise cancelling headphones so you can fully block out any noise when you’re sleeping.
Again, it’s important to think of situations such as a fire or other emergency that should occur when you’re asleep (and unable to hear the alarm) so this is a better idea to utilise when you’re staying with another person.
White Noise Machine
Similarly, white noise machines can be very useful in these scenarios. White noise machines generate ambient sound to mask any and all noises in your surrounding area.
This is not the solution for everyone as the sound of a white noise machine can be annoying in and of itself.
Having said this, it’s a wonderful option for those travelling with babies who require a quiet environment to sleep in.
For a more affordable option, you can download a white noise app or play white noise on YouTube, and this will have a similar effect that the actual machine will have.
Conclusion
All in all, hotels could definitely benefit from implementing some soundproofing measures to ensure a quiet night in each room, regardless of why you’ve booked into the hotel.
Louder guests wouldn’t have to worry about keeping their voices down and those looking to rest can do so in the peace and comfort of their rooms.
Along with this, people will leave happy reviews of the hotel online, and the hotel will gain more traction. Everybody wins!
